Black City
by NACHOE1
Summary: She broke up with him, leaving him with nothing. Then, when he's finally getting over her, she winds up in trouble, and apparently, he's the only one who will do anything to save her.
1. Prologue

Hello! Welcome to my story! This had a prequel, which also had a prequeal, but. I never finished the prequel to this story. I do plan on finishing this one! Hopefully, this will be good. Thanks for reading!

* * *

><p><span>Prologue.<span>

_"I'm tired, Josh."_

_She's looking in my direction. We're about three feet apart, but she's not looking at me. She's talking to me, but she's not looking at me. She's staring at the space behind my bed._

_I'm in the hospital. Why am I in the hospital? Am I sick?_

_I watch her dark, brownie-colored eyes before answering. "I'm tired too."_

_Not the right thing to stay. I'm so stupid! Why aren't I trying to say something reassuring, something productive? No, I need to say something._

_"Really tired."_

_No! Not that!_

_She finally looks at me, I can tell. Her black hair falls over her face, almost covering her eyes. Her sad eyes. Somehow, her sadness is accentuated by the whiteness of her normally tanned skin._

_Why is she so sad?_

_"I know you are. Red just laid waste to you on that stupid mountain! Of course you're tired! But that's not the kind of tired I'm talking about!"_

_Oh. That's what I did._

_Oh. She's not sad._

_Oh. She's. Mad?_

_Wait. Why am I in the hospital?_

_"Red! Did he come down? Did I do it?"_

_Why am I saying this? Why am I not trying to keep her? I don't care about Red; I care about Rae!_

_"There you go again; Red! My God, Josh, you're in the hospital! Instead of staying on vacation with me, and traveling with me, you went to that stupid mountain, leaving me all alone, and you get crushed by a jerk who pushes you down the mountain!"_

_She's standing now. I don't like where this is going. She's beautiful, even when she's mad. Why aren't I saying something to stop her? She's wearing the sweater I bought her; the red one with the Pokeball outline on the back. Why can't I control myself?_

_"He didn't push me down the mountain! The blizzard was so strong, I couldn't see! Sniffles tried to get to me, but he's so big; he couldn't get to me in time! I tripped and fell!"_

_That's why I'm in the hospital._

_Why am I defending myself? Stop it. Apologize._

_"You got hurt! God! Why are you still arguing back?"_

_She's starting to cry now. Nonono. Don't cry. Stop crying. Josh, you *******, stop fighting!_

_"No, Rae, stop, I- I'm not arguing! I'm explaining. Stop crying, please."_

_A little better._

_Silence. Well; silence if you minus Rae's sobbing. I'm dying. I can't stand to see her cry. I need to fix this._

_"I was obligated."_

_No. Not the right thing to say._

_"AGAIN! I'M- AAAARRGH! We've spent three years away from each other, only able to communicate through PokeGear! We finally get a chance to be together, to just be you and me, and you blow it! You leave me! I-I-I-I…. I can't….. I can't be here. I'm done. This is too much. I'm tired. I'm really, really tired. Goodbye Josh."_

_She's crying._

_She's leaving._

_I'm alone._

_I hate me._

* * *

><p>That's the prologue! I have chapter 1 already done too, so I'll post it next.<p> 


	2. Chapter 1: Just Like Starting Over

Alright, here's Chapter 1! Hope it's alright, reviews anyone?

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 1. (Just Like) Starting Over<strong>

It's 12:30 PM. I'm alone in my bed. My hair's all grown out; my stubble's only borderline stubble now and my black hair's all shaggy.

The rocking of the boat doesn't bother me so much either; it's soothing. At least, compared to the last couple of weeks. Weeks of aloneness. And sadness. And anger. And not sleeping.

Lots of thoughts in that span of time. Most of my thoughts aren't good thoughts either. They're angry, sad, frustrated, hurt. Erratic too. It's getting to me now; after a few days the numbness went away and then there were too many thoughts dancing on raw feeling. I had to find something to drown it out.

Battling wasn't any help. I haven't had a losing streak this bad since I first started training.

I feel so bad for my Pokemon, but… I can't. I can't do better. I don't have the heart to battle. I've tried but… I just can't get into it. It's like I'm just watching the whole thing transpire in front of me. My Pokemon work so hard, and I try but. It's not clicking. Pokemon battles just don't help.

Traveling leaves a lot of in between time. More time to think. And the Professors are finally leaving me alone. Sucky timing. I needed the free time before. Not now.

At least I have music. It helps. I can think, but I can drift away too. Not sleep; sleep comes sparingly to me, but I can not be me and just be the music. The words that the artists speak. The sounds the guitars and the bass and the drums and the keyboards and the words make when they mix together and create feeling, feeling put into words. The artist's feelings, my feelings.  
><em><br>"Between the lines we speak are eyes that meet.  
>Will there ever be a chance?<br>Deadlines after lifetimes over, minutes wouldn't matter when you're,  
>Down all the time. Down all the time."<em>

I learned that Red had indeed come down from the mountain. He went home after taking me to the Pokemon Center. Turns out his mother was sick. And he walked in, and she passed away. That must truly, truly be painful. He was gone for a while, and the first time he sees his mom, she's gone.

But I guess that's life. You gain all these things, all these small, unimportant things, and you lose the big stuff. The important stuff. The stuff that hurt.

_"Beneath the city lights I wonder will I ever get the chance.  
>Stop signs enter green lights over.<br>Minutes wouldn't matter when you're,  
>Down all the time. Down all the time."<em>

I'm on a boat. I left all my Pokemon behind. I thought I was lonely before, but this. This was painful. A different painful, but painful. It kind of felt good. I'd never been without my Pokemon. Well, never in about 5 years. It was a different feeling. Like I was a little different than before. That's why I'm leaving Johto in the first place; to start anew. Not that it was my decision; Unova doesn't usually allow foreign Pokemon into their region.

I really miss my Pokemon. Cheshire, my hyperactive, loud and irrational Furret; my equally irrational but less hyper Feraligatr, Chopper; the majestic and wise Toothless, my Flygon; the overprotective, powerful but kind giant Thor the Electivire; the sassy and vain Leafeon, Forina; and the cryptic, mysterious and playful Mismagius, Mima.

I wish I could have brought them with me. I don't like being without them. It's like, I'm naked. I'm exposed. I was without my partners, my family. I was alone, more alone than I was when Rae left. They helped me hold myself together.

But I can't rely on them to hold me together. I have to be strong for them. I had to go.  
><em><br>"The tragedy, it seems, Is pushing up a dream.  
>It's easy to believe that it's worthwhile to achieve."<em>

I want to go somewhere I'd never been before, somewhere where I won't remember her, because she's not going to be with me. In spirit or in body. She's gone. She left. I found a note on my table when I was in the hospital and a useless dial-tone when I called her. But no her. So I have pick myself up now. And try to move on. Just me. No Pokemon, no Rae, just me.

_"If you take a chance.  
>If you take a chance.<br>Would you take a chance?  
>If you take a chance.<br>If you…"_

To Unova I go.

* * *

><p>There's chapter 1! Again, hope it was alright!<p> 


	3. Chapter 2: Life Goes On

Hey guys! Sorry about the wait, but here's chapter two! It's a little uneventful, but it's necessary. I tried my best to properly word and organize this one, so I hope it gets the message across. I'll do my best to make chapter three better, but I hope I did alright on this one too! Anyways, here it is!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2: Life Goes On…<strong>

"CUSTOMERS! Josh, get out there!" came the loud voice of my employer, Jonas.

"I'm going, I'm going…" I muttered, just loud enough for Jonas to hear.

I'm in Striaton City now. Two weeks ago, I arrived via the S.S. Jet Star in Castelia City. I spent about three days and two nights there looking for a job. I found one, but it was in Striaton City; a two day journey if I only stop to sleep. Luckily, there was a truck driver headed to Striaton as well name Tom; turns out he was the delivery boy for the restaurant I was going to work at.

So I hitched a ride from him, and got an interview. I guess most people either are young and go on adventures, or are older and have better jobs, because it was a very short interview and I was working the next day.

So I'm here now, serving as a waiter at the Striaton Gym. Cilan, Cress, and Chili also worked with me, but they were gym leaders, so they often had to duck out of work to go accept a battle.

Which left me with all the work.

There were two people waiting at the door; a boy and a girl about my age. They were talking to each other, and as I approached, the guy brushed a strand of hair out of the girl's face. The boy had messy, brown hair, and wore a white collared t-shirt and blue jeans, while the girl had black hair and had piercing green eyes. She was wearing a white dress with flowery designs at the waist.

They looked like a couple. I hated working when couples came in.

"Table for two?" I asked, faking a smile and hoping I didn't sound too plastic.

They're not even really paying attention to me, but he somehow manages to answer me. "Yessir! Haha! First date, so we better get a good table!" the guy replied cheerily. He enthusiastically wrapped his arm around the girls waist and kissed her on cheek. First date, huh?

"No problem, sir," I replied, gesturing for them to follow, trying my best to keep the annoyance out of my voice. _You will get a very good table. It's going to stand on its own, on its one leg in the center. And it will have two chairs on either side, so that people can sit on it. Oh! And it's going to have spoons and forks and knives for you to use. Yes, it will be a very good table. _

I lead them to a vacant table in the corner of the restaurant, so that they would see less of the other customers, and so that I would see less of them. I handed them their menus, and stepped to the side, awaiting their order.

I don't have to work. I've got money on the side from all my travels. But I needed something to do. I needed to keep my mind busy, keep my body busy. I worked the longest shift too, at my request; I go from opening, nine a.m., to one thirty for lunch. Then I go back to work at two in the afternoon and work until closing, which is nine p.m. Most people work eight hours; I work eleven.

I also work seven days a week. I wake up at eight in the morning, grab a quick breakfast, take a shower, and then it's time to work. After work, I grab a quick dinner from the menu, then head home. I shower, get ready for bed, and at about eleven, I sleep. I do this everyday except Sunday; on Sundays, I wake up at six in the morning and do the necessary get ready for work stuff. I got to work at seven, and I get off at twelve in the afternoon, leaving me with nine hours of free time.

Usually, I use this time to call back home. I'm really glad that Pokemon Centers offer free webcam and calling, because the bill on my Pokegear would be gigantic if I had to call on it.

I call my mom, then Professor Elm. I call Professor Elm mainly because he has my Pokemon. Cheshire likes to talk the most to me; she's always buzzing with new news on something she did. Usually, they're things that I should scold her for, but Thor's always there, so I don't really have to worry, since he keeps her in line. Cheshire just never could get away from his Thunder Waves.

But that only takes up an hour at most; which leaves me with eight hours to kill. I'll usually spend this time going on a walk, or playing my guitar at the park. Spending time in public is always a good way to keep my thoughts from wandering in the wrong direction.

Sometimes, though, I sit in the booth and I stare at the videophone. Those are on the bad days, when I break my rules and I think about her at work. I sit, and I sit, and I sit. I pick the phone up a couple of times too, sometimes even get to dialing, but I usually never go through with it. I know she's not in Sinnoh anymore, but I can't help it. Maybe someone will help me. Maybe someone will give me her number. Or even better, she'll be there again. And we can talk. And fix things.

But I never go through with it. There's no point. I created rules for a reason.

To get over her, with as little pain as possible. If I don't think about her, I don't feel anything. Numbness is better than pain, if you ask me.

So rule number one is simple; don't think about her. Don't think about the good old times, about how we first met, about our first kiss, about how her dark brown hair looked in the sun, about anything that had anything to do with her. Not even her leaving. If I don't think about her, then I don't remember.

Rule number two? Avoid alone time. Like I said, it's easier to keep myself in check when I'm not alone. If I spend my time in a room full of people, I can focus on them. I can talk to them (although I rarely do this), or at least observe them (which is my usual route). I can think of what's going on around me if I'm not alone.

Rule number three follows the same vein. It's why I work. If I work, I'll be busy. I'll be doing my job, paying attention to other people or the food I'm serving. I'm definitely not alone at work. The delivery guy, Tom, usually talks to me when he's there, even if I don't really reply. He just talks and talks and talks. Which is good; his words fill my head, leaving less room for her to sneak up and catch me offguard. And I throw myself at any and every opportunity to do more work, which keeps both my mind and body busy.

Rule number four is also connected to the previous two; if there's an event, go to it. Festivals, contests, hikes, demonstrations, anything. There's usually a lot of things going on at these things, which helps keep my mind busy.

Rule number five is the easiest of my rules, as well as the last of them. No matter what I'm doing, I have to have my Pokegear on me, so that I can listen to music. Basically, the rule is to make sure I have music on me. Reading books help too, but I don't have a lot of time to read except on Sundays. So the music is useful. I listen mainly to music that won't remind me of her. I focus on everything, the bass, the guitar, the vocals, the drums, the arrangement… If I can focus on something that will envelope my entire thinking capacity, then I focus on it.

I'm very good at following these rules. I don't think about her because it hurts. And I'm usually too busy doing something else anyways, so I can't really think about her. And alone time is sparce, with my hectic schedule and the random events that always seem to be happening in Striaton City. So that's easy. And work; I work a lot. I was luck enough to have a pretty understanding, and demanding, boss. Jonas lets me work. He doesn't mind. I'm an extra helping hand, and I work for cheap. So working is easy. And events occur often, and usually on Sundays, so I can follow this rule easily enough. And music; I listen to music a lot regardless of whether I need to forget something or not. I just need it now, so I listen to music more.

So I'm set. A few people have told me that it would be better if I worked less and just got wasted, but I figured that my alternative is better. I stay sober, and I keep the numbness. It's better my way, and it comes more naturally to me. It's a win-win situation. Well, as win-win a situation can be when I always lose.

However, every now and then, I slip up. I think about her, and everything I've done goes to waste. Sometimes, I feel like I'm getting better. I actually talk to Tom and the customers. But someone always says something, and I'm back at square one.

I agree, it's a bit extreme. All these things that I'm doing are extreme, but I have to. I can't give myself time to think about her. Because it hurts. And I can't deal with the hurt, with the fact that I don't have her to talk to whenever possible anymore.

It didn't have to be so bad, I know. If I had just broken up with her before she left Canalave City all those years ago, then I would have been fine. It would have hurt, yes, but it would have been so much better than this. If I had not dreamt of our future together, and only thought about the now, then yes. It would have been easier. If I had just stayed with her instead of going to that stupid mountain, then yes. I would still be with her. So much easier. If I had not loved her, it would have been so much easier. I wouldn't be this hurt about everything.

Everything could have been avoided, yes, but it wasn't. And I'm left to deal with the consequences.

And that's my life. I'm Joshua Morgan, 19 years old. I came in sixteenth place during the Silver Conference, thirtheenth at the Indigo Plateu, and nineth in the Sinnoh League. I won multiple small-time tournaments, came in second for a major tournament, and I was able to dance toe-to-toe with Red. I am acquainted and often employed by Professor Elm, Professor Oak, and Professor Rowan, as well as a few other big time names.

And I currently work in Striaton City as a waiter, all alone, and without Pokemon.

My life goes on.

* * *

><p>So what'd you think? Reviews are nice, but I just hope that this was an alright chapter. I'll try to make the next chapter a little more eventful, though!<p> 


	4. Chapter 3: Giving Up

Hey guys! Sorry for the wait, I kind of got lazy. But here's chapter three! Chapter four will be up shortly too.

~~~~~****

**Chapter 3: Giving Up**

JOSH! JOSH! JOSHJOSHJOSHJOSHJOSH! HOW ARE YOOOOOUUUUZ? came the frantic chirping of the ferret-like Pokemon.

Professor Elm came running into the room, seeable by the tiny space Cheshire left on the view screen to see his background. "Wh-wh- what's wrong! Fire! Where! Where?" he exclaimed headed for the nearest fire extinguisher.

"No, no! Professor Elm! It's fine; Cheshire's just a little excited. There's nothing to worry about," I explained calmly. I admit, I missed my Furret, but I can't say I'd be happy to get away from the quiet days I've spent here in Unova. Especially since…

"O-oh. O-ok. I'm just a little jumpy. There was a fire here earlier, I just wanted to make sure. You go talk to Cheshire, Josh." Professor Elm said as he left the room.

I started to say something, but the professor was already out of earshot. Fire? "Hey, Chesh? There was a fire?" I decided to ask.

I'll tell you later. I have a story for you! burst Cheshire. Ok, so today, my day was ok. I had lots of fun. I did a lot of playing. I played with ALL the other Pokemon here, including Thor! We played tag! It was so fun! Oh! Oh! But but but first! I need to start all the way at the beginning of my day!

I laughed. I really missed Cheshire. "You don't need to, Chesh. But go ahead, if it makes you happy." I laughed again. Talking to Cheshire was always the best part of the week.

IT DOES! OK OK! I woke up, and I stretched for a REAAAAALLLY long time. And then I saw some little Sentret running outside of Professor Elm's compound, so I decided to go chase after them! But I got stopped. I ran into that stupid fence surrounding Elm's compound. And you know what I said? she paused.

I waited. Cue, answer. "No, I don't. What'd you say?" I asked. She was a very interactive speaker.

I said, "ARRRRGH!" HAHAHAH! Isn't that funny? the Furret chirped, laughing her head off.

I laughed with her, but more at her silliness. The story itself was only a little bit funny."Yes, Chesh, that was kinda funny."

I humored her. So sue me.

Kinda! You obviously have no sense of humor. WAIT! BACKGROUND NOISE! she stopped exclaiming and shot up onto her tail, rigidly facing wherever the source of the noise she heard was coming from.

Apparently, it was nothing.

Never mind. I think it was Thor farting. ANYWAYS, she continued, ignoring my chuckle, Then I gave them a piece of advice. "Be FREEEEEEEEE, little Sentret! Be FREE! There's so much life in the world; TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT! LIVE IT! LIVE IT TO DEATH! SMELL THE ROSES! TACKLE THE BUTTERFREE! And most importantly, TAKE A LOT OF SHOWERS! YOU ALL SMELL BAD! BUT I SMELLED BAD TOO! I WAS A SENTRET ONCE! AND NOW I'M A FURRET! YOU MUST BOW DOWN TO ME, AND MY SUPERIOR KNOWLEDGE! I'M SERPERIOR! Get it? Never mind. COME BACK, LITTLE SENTRET, WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU! LISTEN TO MY KNOWLEDGE! I BEAT A GYARADOS!" And then Thor walked up behind me and used karate chopped me. Big meanie. He said something about it being too early for my craziness, something about four in the morning. He's big and fat and lazy and he's a poopoo head. It's not my fault that I'm awesomer than him. I should get a medal for being better. He's a bully too! A big bully! You know what happened earlier! Ugh! It was the meanest thing! He Thunder Waved me again! I WAS PARALYZED, JOSH! CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT GIANT POOPOO HEAD'S NERVE? Ugh. So rude!

I laughed the whole time she told her story. She definitely had a screw loose somewhere, but it didn't bother me. It actually helped; that story about her taking on a Gyarados and coming out victor is true. She scared the Gyarados more than it scared her, actually. But Thor wouldn't Thunder Wave Cheshire for no reason; he always had a reason. The question is; what?

"Why did Thor paralyze you, Chesh? What'd you do this time?"

NOTHING! HONEST! He's a meanie. Cheshire exclaimed, raising both paws up in an attempt to plead innocent.

"You sure? How about you call Thor over?" I crossed my arms and looked at Cheshire accusingly.

She did something. He's a meanie, AND a liar! There's no reason to call him over! Cheshire insisted.

Oh no.

"Chesh. Elm said there was a fire earlier."

Not my fault!

"I didn't accuse you."

You sound like you are!

"I'm not."

I WANT A LAWYER!

"You can't have one."

WHYYYYYY!

Cheshire began wailing loudly, crying. I felt bad; I don't think I had to push so hard. But I needed to figure out what my Furret did. I know she did something. I tried soothing her, taking back my comments and even let her have a lawyer, but she kept crying.

After a few minutes, she stopped wailing and began sobbing incoherently. A good start. Words started becoming understandable too. I….. And then… But… And the fire… Thor's… Big meanie… Surf… And I'M SORRY!

She started crying again. "Chesh, tell me what happened. I won't get mad. I promise. Just tell me what you did. I think it's understandable to assume you did something again, right?"

No… she muttered between sobs.

I waited.

Yes… she muttered again, still sobbing.

"Ok. So tell me. Go aallll the way to the beginning of the problem."

Talking to Cheshire sometimes felt like talking to a little kid.

Cheshire sniffed, started to talk, paused, and then began. Well… It started after Thor karate chopped me. I didn't appreciate Thor's rudeness. So I got back at him. IT'S A POKEMON EAT POKEMON WORLD, BUDDY! YOU JUST GOTTA GO WITH IT AND ROLL WITH IT! That's my motto!

I waited for her to start again. Oh yeah. Story. Well. I decided to get back at him. I said, "Thor! You're a big meanie!" and he said, "No I'm not. Mima was threatening to come out of the lab and curse you or something. I'm doing you a favor." And I said, "Bring her on! I can take on a Gyarados! A silly, creept, mysterious, powerful… Mystic… Creepy… … … Silly Mismagius won't stop me!"and he said, "I think she will." and I said, "No she won't!" and he said, "Yes she will." and I said, "No!" and he said, "Yeeesssss." and I said, "No!" and he said, "Ye-" and I cut him off and said, "No no no no no!" Then he said that I won. And that made me happy. And he told me that I should do something quiet. And I said, "Ok." and he said, "Good." Then I went to go pick some flowers, and he said that if I did anything noisy again, he'd paralyze me. And that made me mad. VERY mad. Like. MAD. So mad, that it makes mad look not mad! Yes, Josh. I'm talking, COMPLETELY mad.

Again, I waited for her to begin talking. Silence.

Oh yeah. Sorry. Well. I decided to show that big meanie that I wasn't going to let him stop me from having the freedom that all my forefathers sacrificed their blood, sweat, and lives to give me. I was going to fight! Fight and win! Like the Indians won against the colonials! So I used surf on Thor. And he got mad. And tried to use thunder wave on me. I'm faster than that slowpoke as long as you don't electric him, so I ran away as fast as I could. Then I turned around and used rock smash on him. It didn't hurt him as much as I thought it would. So I went to Plan B and I used surf on him again. He got washed away, 'cos he's so cocky and I got to beat him. He tried to thunder wave me again, but I moved, and it apparently hit something it shouldn't have, and it started a fire. Not a big one, but some of Professor Elm's plants burned, along with his fridge. Good thing me and Chopper know water attacks. Well. Chopper at least. Because I made a tactical retreat. I won my medal; I got away from Thor's thunder wave! But the other Pokemon were mad at me… Mima held me up with psychic, and then they paralyzed me. They're so mean, right Josh? You're gonna do something about it, right? Cheshire looked at me with puppy eyes, hoping I wouldn't get mad at her, but instead, at the others.

Oh boy. "Cheshire…." I groaned, dropping my head into my hand. What was I going to do with this Furret? Even when I'm not with her, she causes trouble.

Professor Elm already punished me though. I'm not allowed outside of this room he has. I have to sit there and do nothing for two days. She pouted, before adding, Make him stop? PLEAAAAAAAAAAASE?

Puppy dog eyes again. But they wouldn't work, no matter how much it made my heart hurt. Well, whatever part of my heart that could still hurt at least. The part of my heart that she didn't get into, the Pokemon part of my heart.

Pooey. You're mean now too. Is this because of Rae? How are you with her by the way? I never ask that. I always talk about other things. Like clowns. Do you like clowns still? I hate clowns now. They scare me. I wasn't paying attention anymore though.

Why Cheshire? Why? Rule number one. Don't think about her. I'm always on the verge of thinking of her, but I never go onto a full on think. But. With such an upfront question, how could I not? Oh Cheshire. You and your emotional capacity of a spoon. No wonder even the Ditto wouldn't mate with you when I dropped you off at the Day Care Center.

… And all these Pokemon falling in love is really starting to get on my nerves. Almost as much as the clowns! Cheshire continued. She finally noticed I wasn't paying attention.

Josh? Hellooooooo..? You still here? Joooooshhhhy? NO. Are you still in love with her? Josh! It's been eight months! Come on, Josh, you're stronger than that! Cheshire's face was the only thing I could see on the screen now.

I couldn't say anything. Cheshire was breaking so many of my rules now. This was going to hurt so bad later. I'd been doing so well too…

Josh! You have to move on, buddy! She doesn't want you anymore; if she did, she wouldn't have left so thoroughly. You can't even find her anymore! We've tried, remember? Where's the Josh that took on Whitney's unbeatable Miltank, despite knowing it's been undefeated for ages? The Josh who sailed to Cianwood City and back to get Jasmine some tea for Amphy? Or the Josh who fought in the Silver Conference, lost, and picked himself back up and challenged the Kanto League, and lost again in the Indigo Plateu, and decided it was time to take Sinnoh on by storm? And while in Sinnoh, we went through the ruins in Snowpoint and had to defend himself and his Pokemon against that Regigigas? And challenged all the gym leaders and took on the Lily of the Valley Conference? Where is that Josh?

I stared at the ground. Chesh was right. I'd been so many things; but what am I now? What am I now? Even if I don't have her, I'm still her. I'm still me.

But… It's empty. I want to move on. Living like this isn't easy, it isn't fun. Today leads to tomorrow. Tomorrow to the next. And the next. And the next.

And no her. No Rae. I can't do it. I can't. I… I'm trying though. Maybe… Maybe it's time to start trying harder. I was a functioning human being before her, I can function again.

"Chesh. You're right. I… I need to start trying harder. I need to try and move on... Thanks, Chesh. You're crazy, but you're definitely a good Pokemon." I wanted to hug my Furret so bad. I I shouldn't have left them. I could have stayed with them, and been with them.

Uhhh… I don't know how that answers my question, but. I'm glad I helped. Somehow. Uhm. What did I say that led you to that conclusion? I don't see the connection! Cheshire looked genuinely bewildered.

I laughed. I was starting to feel better already.

~~~~

KEREKUU! KEREKUU! KEREKUU!

Ugh. Monday morning. Usually, waking up was good. It meant time to work, which meant I would be busy. But after yesterday's talk with Cheshire, as soon as I hung up on them, my world closed.

Note to self; no thinking about Rae. I can't do it yet. I want to. I should. I know I can. Eventually. Not now.

So that meant I spent most of the day in front of the videophone. I stared at it. This time was different though; I wasn't tempted to call her. I just… I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to leave the Pokemon Center; that just meant walking out into a whole world of no Rae. I couldn't deal with that, at least not at the time.

So I sat there. I sat there until some old lady kicked me off by hitting me with her cane, yelling something about needing to talk to her grandson in Hoenn to get rid of a bug problem in the toilet. I don't know.

So I went home, and went straight to bed. And then I woke up.

I stayed in a little apartment where the only separation between rooms was the bathroom door. Basically, it was one room that had a fridge, a sink, and a bathroom. I had a bed too, and that was about it. It was very plain.

I turned my music on and got in the shower. Music; the only thing that won't let me down. As long as I stay away from The Beatles, I'll be fine. Too many Beatles songs I have associated with her…

_"I'm going away for a while, but I'll be back; don't try to follow me. 'Cause I'll return as soon as possible. See, I'm trying to find my place, but it might not be here where I feel safe. We all learn to make mistakes…"_

I sing along. I like to sing in the shower, it's the closest I usually let myself get to allowing emotions come out.

_"And run from them, from them, with no direction. We'll run from them, from them, with no conviction."_

I think I've been overreacting. Maybe this was acceptable behavior, ish, like, the first two months of us being broken up. But… It's been eight already. I need to pick up the pieces.

_"'Cause I'm just one of those ghosts, travelin' endlessly. Don't need no roads;In fact, they follow me. And we just go in circles..."_

I have been a ghost. I've been a shell. I've been nothing but an empty, working machine. With the occasional bout with grief. I need to be human again. I need to interact with other people. Not for, or because of, her, but for me. Because of me. I need to do this for me.

_"And now I'm told that this is life; that pain is just a simple compromise, so we can get what we want out of it. Would someone care to classify, our broken hearts and twisted minds? So I can find someone to rely on.___

_And run to them, to them. Full speed ahead. Oh, you are not useless. We are just…___

_Misguided ghosts. Travelin' endlessly. The ones we trusted the most pushed us far away. And there's no one road. We should not be the same. But I'm just a ghost and still they echo me.__  
><em>_They echo me in circles."_  
>I'm not going to keep living like this. I have to move on.<p>

~~~

"Hey, Josh! Good job, kiddo! I'm noticing a slight improvement in your work! The customers are actually starting to like you! Hahaha!"

I saluted Jonas. It's been two weeks since I decided I was done pitying myself and start trying to move on. It's been working out pretty well. I've started to actually enjoy myself. The emptiness hasn't left me, but there's a little less empty. Maybe it's just that I'm starting to actually talk to people.

Or maybe it's because of Serena.

She started coming in on the Tuesday after my conversation with Cheshire. I accidentally bumped into her, and I almost spilled water all over her dress. Good thing she wasn't wearing white. That might have been bad.

I offered to pay for her lunch, to make it up to her. She agreed, but under the condition that I eat lunch with her. Jonas, who had come out from the kitchen to see what all the noise had been, heard this and let me take an early break. He ended up taking my spot though, so I don't see that happening again.

But I had a nice lunch with her. She's very nice. She was nineteen, just a few months older than me, and outgoing, which meant we got along well. I'll talk if you talk. She had a very bright personality too, so she was a real mood lifter.

And after that, she came in for lunch everyday (minus Sunday). We talked a lot, and she often wouldn't leave until I got off of work. I got off earlier now, since Jonas decided to hire a new guy. I don't think he liked the fact that if I got off of work, he had to fill in. The Striaton Gym Leaders were really busy this time of year; it was spring, which was when most of the newer trainers would come through and try to earn their first badge.

Suddenly, I saw a head of wavy blonde hair walk into the restaurant. Lunch time!

"Hey, you're finally here! Good timing; I was starting to get hungry!" I walked in her direction as I took off the apron I wore on my waist and hung it up at the receiving area.

"How can you not be hungry? You don't even eat breakfast." She replied as she gave me a hug. I have to admit, it was a nice hug, but it was weird for me. I wasn't ready for this kind of intimacy. But we were friends, so I returned her hug.

"Pssh, I don't need breakfast. I used to be a Pokemon Trainer. Days on the road weren't always kind to the stomach." She laughed at this.

"Ok, ok, Mr. Ex-Pokemon Trainer. Let's just get a table and eat, ok?" She headed over to our usual table and sat down. The new kid, Aaron, came over and handed us our menus.

He was a little bit shorter than me, probably about five-foot-six, had hazel-brown hair and a baby. His eyes were blue though. If it weren't for his introspective personality, I'd be surprised he didn't have a girlfriend. Heck, even with his introspective personality I'm surprised.  
>"Hello, good afternoon! Welcome to the Striaton Three-Seasons Restaurant! I'm Aar-" he began before I cut him off.<p>

"Aaron, Aaron. We all know that I work with you. Which means I know where this place is, and I was working two seconds ago. I understand formality, but really, kid, it's unnecessary with me and Serena. We're regulars. You can just cut to the chase; customers like it better." I patter him on the shoulder, hoping it would lessen whatever malice he might feel towards me for interrupting me.

He was a good kid though, and he didn't seem to harbor any bad feelings. "A-all right, Josh. I-I  
>'ll keep that in m-mind. U-uh.. So.. W-will you two be having t-the usual?"<p>

"Josh! Oh, poor Aaron! Josh, be nice to him. Don't mind him, Aaron. Josh is just a big meanie who thinks he's all cool." She slapped me on the arm, and continued, "Yes, Aaron, we'll be having the usual."

She smiled at him, and he did this half-bow thing and shuffled off. She stared at me, reprimanding me with her eyes. "Josh, you know he's new. Be nice to him!"

I laughed at her and replied, "Yes, but he needs to figure this stuff out soon. Customer's will complain if they don't like the way he works. I'm pretty sure the only reason I'm still working here is because I used to be the only one who would work here."

She opened her mouth to say something, stopped, opened it again, and began to pout. I won, and began to laugh. "Yeah, I got you."

"Shut up!" she exclaimed, mock punching me in the arm.

"Ow." We both burst out laughing.

After we settled down, Aaron arrived with our food. Serena got a Caesar salad, while I got a burger and fries. I began eating, and after a few bites, I realized that Serena hadn't even touched her food. She was looking at me funny.

Uh…

"You good?" I asked. I was a little scared. I'm not ready for anything passed this.

"Yeah, yeah. I just… Why would the customers not like you? I heard from Jonas and Tom that you'd changed since you first got here. That you were cold, distant, and unfriendly. And a workaholic. Why?"

Oh. I… I can't answer that question right now.

"Why not?" she asked. Did I say that out loud?

I could tell by the look on her face that she was determined to find out. "Things happened. I just decided that I was done with it, and I needed to move on."

Close enough to the truth. Watch your line of thinking, Josh.

"Does it have something to do with why you're not a Pokemon Trainer anymore?"

"No… I just. It's complicated," I replied, hoping she would leave it at that.

"I can listen. We have time." She folded her fingers, rested her head on them, and stared at me. She had pretty eyes…

"Well… I…" Don't do it, Josh. You're not ready for this. "I…"

I was cut off by a whirlwind of motion, and a familiar loud voice. "JOSHIE! Wassup, buddy! Oh man, you on a date! Nice, man! She's a looker too!"

Tom. His scrawny arms wrapped around my neck and gave me a noogie, his black trucker hat falling to the floor, revealing his short, messy red hair.

"Tom! Hey, no, no, you're taking this wrong. We're just friends. Anyways, what're you doing back here? Deliveries aren't until tomorrow," I said as soon as he let go of my head.

"This is Serena by the way," I gestured toward Serena, who smiled and waved. I gestured to Tom and said, "And this is Tom." He smiled, revealing his white teeth, and waved back.

"Hi, there, pretty lady. Anyways, I just felt like coming back. The deliveries came in early, and I decided to head over here today and hang out with my buddy. Didn't know he would have company. Anyways, I'm gonna go turn on the TV, ok?" He saluted Serena and headed over to the TV.

As soon as he was at the TV, I looked back at Serena and began to apologize.

"It's alright, Josh. He seems like a nice guy. Just really outgoing. Anyways, you were saying?"

I was about to begin, when I heard something on the TV.

_"-and this is Lauren Parker, reporting in front of the main market area of Black City, where a young woman name Mica Rae is being held hostage by members of Team Rocket. They aren't asking for any ransom, but instead, they are asking that we leave the area immediately. Local authorities are handling the situation as we speak."_

I froze, and my eyes widened. Serena, oblivious to what was happening, asked me what was wrong. I couldn't answer. She began calling my name, but I couldn't say anything.

I turned around to look at the TV, hoping they were wrong.

On the TV screen, there was a young woman, about five-foot-four, with dark brown hair. She wore a denim jacket, a dress or a blouse or whatever. It was dark blue at the top and had flowers towards the bottom. I could never figure out that blouse/dress. And black tights. She was screaming, and shouting, or at least trying, since there was a black bandana tied around her head over her mouth. Struggling, that's what she was doing, against a group of men in a black uniform. With a big, red 'R' on the front of their shirts.

And Rae was in the middle of them.

~~~~

And that is chapter 3! Hope you liked it!


	5. Chapter 4: With a Shove

Chapter 4: Sometimes it comes with a shove

I couldn't believe my ears.

All these months I spent, trying to get away from her; in vain. And the ironic part was, I had left for Unova to get away from her, yet here we are, in the same region. The possibility of us bumping into each other is much higher when we are in the same region than when we're in different ones.

Mica Rae Sanders was in Unova. First thought that entered my head. She's in Black City. In Unova.

Team Rocket is in Unova. Second thought.

Third thought. Team Rocket and Rae were in Black City. At the same time. At the same place.

Fourth thought? Oh shit – which was followed emotionally by panic, fear, and frustration.

Team Rocket was holding Rae hostage on the other side of the region. Far from Striaton. And the worst part is, I couldn't do anything about it anyways. I couldn't take on Team Rocket by myself. I don't have Pokemon anymore. It would be too late by the time I was able to fill up the forms to let Cheshire and the rest come over to Unova.

But it's fine. It's on the news. They can do something about it. If it's on the news, then the police know.

"_- And here is Derrick Fisher, the hostage's boyfriend, who attempted to apprehend Mica Rae's captives, but failed. Derrick, can you tell us what happened?"_

I had lost track of what was happening on the news, but I heard them say something about Rae's boyfriend, which caught my attention.

And stopped my heart. Her boyfriend.

Eight months. That's all it took. It took her eight months to find someone new. And here I was, still drowning in the pain and emptiness her leaving left. He was good looking, if not for his ridiculous clothing. His messy, sand colored hair was covered by a grey hood, which was connected to what looked like what the armor medieval knights used to wear. On his chest was a shield-like emblem, which was emblazoned with a blue letter 'P' and a zigzag running behind it. Tall too, taller than the reporter. He must have stood more than a head taller than Rae.

"_Yes, well, you see; in a few days, one of Rae's favorite bands, The Script, was supposed to have a show here, so we decided to come down from Castelia City and watch. We were looking for a nice place to stay, and she decided to go check behind a corner. I stopped to ask someone for directions, since we were both unfamiliar with the city. I heard her scream, and I chased after her, only to find two members of Team Rocket send out a Drowzee and put her to sleep. I sent out my Purrloin in an attempt to stop them, but they were too strong, and defeated my Purrloin. I gave chase to them, but the Drowzee set up a barrier, and prevented me from following."_

"_So what are your plans now? You are obviously a member of Team Plasma, the number one police force here in Unova. You must have some sort of plan to help your girlfriend's predicament."_

"_Actually, I have already contacted my higher ups. I assume that they will keep Mica safe, so she will be back in my arms within the week. No need to worry, Team Plasma will have this under control."_

"_Well, that was Derrick Fisher , and I'm Lauren Parker. Back to-" she paused, then pushed a finger in to her ear, where I assume an ear piece was saying something._

"_Uh-huh, uh-huh. Got it. This just in! Team Rocket has finally given an ultimatum! They said, and I quote, 'We want three days. Three days. No law enforcement. We want out of this city. You get the girl back, alive, we get out. Fair trade. You have eight hours to act; if in eight hours the city is not cleared of law enforcement, the girl goes. Along with anyone who tries to stop us.' I…."_

She kept talking, but I stopped listening again. Rae was in danger, her boyfriend is a coward, and he isn't going to do anything.

So I am. He's leaving too much up to chance. I need to even those odds.

It was then that I realized that Serena was still trying to talk to me.

"Josh! Joooooshie! Joshie joshie josh! Joshua? JOOSH. Hey, you back? Welcome back, buddy. You ok?"

She knew nothing. No one knew anything, actually. I'd forgotten about that. "Yeah, yeah. It's the-uh, it's just the news."

"Oh. Yeah, that's disturbing. Team Rocket's supposedly been disbanded for about ten years. It's disturbing to think they're suddenly back; they caused some real trouble in their time." It looked like I had her sold, but her eyes…

She knew there was more. "But what else? I mean, there has to be something more. You seem to be taking this too personally for it to be 'just' the news. What's up?"

Serena does this listening thing, where she crosses her arms and puts her head down on them. It's her "listening position" she once called it. Which is what she did now.

I sighed. There was once a time where I could pass off anything without needing to explain.

"Ok, well… I haven't told anyone this, at least not anyone here in Unova, but there is a reason I came to Unova. I-" but I was cut off by Serena bolting upright and exclaiming, "You're part of Team Rocket!"

"No! Slow down, let me finish!" She put her head back down on her arms, smiling, and quietly said, "Oh."

Why am I doing this again? I started explaining again. "Anyways, I-" but I was cut off again, by the same thing.

"You're a spy, here to take down Team Rocket!"

"No! Would you just listen?" Again, she put her head back down.

"No more interruptions, or I'm not talking," I ordered sternly. She imaginarily zipped her lips and in a similar fashion threw away the keys.

"I-" paused.

Nothing. No interruption.

"I traveled to Unova to get away from a girl." I had mixed feelings about getting that off my chest. It was good, but I wasn't sure what talking about it would do to me. I wasn't over everything yet. Obviously, judging by my reaction to the news report.

"You loved her?" Serena asked, tilting her head to the left.

"Yes, I loved her. Very much. But I was a Pokemon Trainer, a good one at that. I was needed everywhere, doing all sorts of things. And she's a backpacker; she travels everywhere. She takes on all sorts of odd jobs, and travels. We couldn't be together much. I took a break from Pokemon Training to be with her, but something pulled me back and I left. I got hurt, and she couldn't take it. So she left. I couldn't take being in familiar waters, so I had to leave. Start somewhere new. I'd been to everywhere but Hoenn and Unova, and she'd been to Hoenn, so I figured I should go somewhere even she had never been. Not so smart, should have gone somewhere she had been, in retrospect, because she's here now."

Serena perked up again. "She's here? Where?" She searched the room eagerly.

I shook my head, and I didn't say anything. I just looked her in the eye. Her grey eyes lit up with understanding. "Ohh… She's on TV, isn't she?" she asked quietly.

"And she's not the reporter," was my solemn answer.

She looked at me, her eyes just dripping with sympathy. "I stopped talking. Stopped living. I focused on just getting through the day, hoping not to feel anything. To feel meant to feel the pain of her leaving, and I couldn't take it. So I chose not to feel. I was a robot, of sorts," I explained.

"Oh, Josh. I'm sorry. Is that why you weren't so liked by everyone before?"

I nodded. "So what changed? What happened?" she asked.

"I decided to get over her. Decided that I was done wasting my life away trying to forget her. And that getting over her would happen when I stopped holding myself back." I ran my fingers through my shaggy black hair, and noticed that she looked a little relieved.

"That's good. I'm glad you decided to move on for yourself. It would be a shame if you wasted your life away. Were you able to get over her?" It was only then that I realized she had been eating her food. She was almost done.

"No," was my simple answer.

She looked up, and… Smiled? but cringed at the same time, if that's even possible. "O-oh. I see. Well…" she took the last bite of her salad, leaving behind a few random pieces of lettuce and diced carrots on her plate. "Thanks for the lunch! I'll see you around later, ok? I've got some… Some errands. That I have to take care of. Bye."

She stood up and left, making quick steps. She looked like she was in a hurry to leave. Odd, since she usually stayed around a bit longer before she left me to do my work.

But it didn't bother me too much. I felt bad, yes. Serena was a big reason why I was able to pick myself back up again. I feel like I did something to hurt her, or offend her, or something. But I wasn't in the mood, or mental state to be of any company anyways. It's better that she left.

I looked back at the news, which was now talking about Lance's latest win against some trainer who apparently was predicted to defeat him. Didn't work out as plan, something about poor strategizing.

I looked away from the screen, a little irritated that the situation in Black City only had three minutes of airtime at most. Maybe four. There was a person who was in danger, and no one seemed to be doing anything about it. No one cared.

I knew what I had to do. Question was; should I do it? Rae left me. She went out of her way to erase herself from my life. And me hers. I'd be risking myself for her. Which I could do, no problem.

But I don't have any Pokemon. I can't send over my old Pokemon. So running to Black City would be pointless, not to mention potentially dangerous. I should let that Team Plasma group handle it. They're apparently pretty effective.

But… What if they don't do anything? How can I be sure that Rae will make it out safe and sound?

What do I do?

"JONAS! I'm taking the rest of the day off!" I called out, dropping a tip for Aaron as I stood up.

I wasn't sure he actually heard me, so I walked over to the cashier to look for him. He usually manned the cashier at lunch time. Turns out, he didn't hear me.

"Ok! You and your little girlie get into a fight?" Jonas asked after I repeated myself. He laughed a boisterous laugh, holding his gut as he did so. He reminded me of Tito on that Rocket Power show from when I was a kid.

"No, nothing like that. I've got stuff that I need to take care of. I…" I thought for a second. Would I be coming back? I'll only need a couple of hours. I'll be back tomorrow.

"I'll be back tomorrow though, so don't worry." I'm pretty sure I'll be back.

"Ok, you do what you need. AARON! CLEAN UP THAT TABLE NOW!" Tido-I mean Jonas barked. Aaron was across the room, talking to Tom. A quiet "yes sir" was heard, followed by the sound of shuffling feet.

"That's why I hired that kid," I heard Jonas saying as I walked away.

I shook my head as I walked out of the restaurant/gym. Back in my world, I didn't know what I should do. I was confused. I needed someone to talk to. Someone who would be able to actually help me. Someone like…

"So what do you think, Jae?"

I was back at the Pokemon Center, on their video phone again, only this time, I made one of those rare calls home.

Well, rare calls for my sister, Jasey, home. She was a year older than me, but much more accomplished. She actually won her first League Challenge, and almost defeated Cynthia as well. I guess Cynthia was impressed, because as soon as my sister got home, she was buzzing about how Cynthia had decided to take her on as her apprentice. Cynthia calls her an accomplice, though.

She was a bit shorter than me, but of my two sisters, we looked the most alike. We both had black hair, although mine was a bit wavier than hers, and only reached my shoulder when pulled out, while hers was waist-length and straight. We both had brown eyes, which were just a little chinky, just like we had similar facial parts. Same nose, same lips, everything. We might as well have been twins.

Despite the similarity in looks, she was much more outgoing.

"Bitch! You better get your ass over to Black City and freakin DO something! Those lazy ass Team Plasma wimps are pathetic! Freakin, what is 'I'm going to wait for my leader to save my girlfriend'? Sorry, bro. But anyways, yeah! Hell! If I were in Unova right now, MY ass would be over at Black City causing some real SHIT for those Rockets! Who the hell do they think they are, kidnapping a helpless citizen? God! Freakin stupid! What are they gonna do now? Now everyone's watching them! What is wrong with people?" she yelled into the phone, flailing her arms around.

"But-" I began, but she cut me off.

"No buts! You need to go over and save her! Freakin coward! Won't go and save his girlfriend. Not you. Sorry. But you go and save her! Grab your balls and do it! She needs help! Your help, since everyone else in the Unova Region seems to be freakin wussies and can't do shit. God! What's wrong with those people? That girl needs help!" Jasey face-palmed herself, Arceus knows why, and sighed.

"Freakin stupid," she added.

"I don't have Pokemon on me anymore," I said, bracing myself for the fury that would surely follow.

"YOU DON'T HAVE POKEMON? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU? GOD! You're my little brother! I am freakin Cynthia's apprentice. CYNTHIA! THE POKEMON LEAGUE CHAMPION! HOW CAN YOU NOT HAVE POKEMON? Make me freakin look bad!" She shook the video-phone while standing up, giving me a headache, as she yelled this out.

"Excuse me! You need to keep it down over there, or I'm going to have to ask you to leave," a voice, woman, came from Jasey's end of the line.

"Oh, sorry! I'll keep it down," Jasey said, scratching the back of her head in embarrassment, before turning her attention back at me, glaring. "Look what you did! Now they're probably mad at me! I'm not gonna get that free buffet they promised!"

"You're the one yelling," I argued, only to be answered with a tongue sticking out at me.

She looked at me for a second, her facial expression lost, before suddenly brightening up and speaking. I guess she forgot what we were talking about. "Anyways! You need to go catch a freakin Pokemon then! Geez, you're only a year younger! You don't need me to freakin babysit you! What are you, four? Geez. Make a decision!" Her arms were flailing again, something she does whenever she's ranting. And frustrated with the stupidity of the situation.

I sighed. It was actually very refreshing talking to my sister. It's been almost four months since we last spoke? Something like that. She was very real with what she said, not afraid to grab your fingers and slam the windows on them when she needed to say something.

It really helped. "Thanks, Jae. I know what I need to do." I started to hang up, but realized I should wait til we were done talking. Jae was a very busy girl, being Cynthia's apprentice/accomplice. She was always doing some sort of research, or exploration. Her Pokemon must be monsters by now.

"You better know what to do. God! I leave you alone to start my journey and you go to freakin shit! I can't babysit you your whole life!" We both knew that she would babysit me my whole life if needed.

But it wasn't. I laughed, and began reassuring her of my resolve. I was going to do it.

"Alright. I'll talk to you later. Better not get your ass kicked. Make me look bad. Anyways, BYE! I LOVE YOU!" She said the last sentence sweetly, completely contrasting the annoyed tone she had kept up the whole conversation. I don't know how we could be related, but I love my sister.

Time for the task at hand.

The Dreamyard. All young (and hope-to-be) trainers came here, whether it be to explore the abandoned laboratory, train their Pokemon, catch a new one, or pretend to do both.

I was here to do the second last bit.

It felt kind of weird, trying to find a new Pokemon. It was somewhat nostalgic, scrounging around the abandoned laboratory in the Dreamyard, hoping to find even the trace of a Pokemon.

For the longest time, I'd had both Cheshire and Chopper to rely on when searching for Pokemon. Cheshire's keen eyes were able to spot even the smallest details, allowing her to notice any disturbances in the natural surrounding to find whether a Pokemon was there, and where they could possibly be headed. She also had pretty decent hearing, so she could hear sounds that my ears couldn't. And Chopper's sense of smell was pretty good too. He could smell Pokemon out, so long as they were within a three mile radius.

I was looking for Cheshire last time I had to rely on nothing but me to find a Pokemon.

So, you can imagine, doing this all over again felt weird. Twenty-four badges, three Pokemon League Tournaments and more tournaments than I could count after I started my journey, I was a newbie again. Go figure.

I was laying down on my stomach, crawling on the dirty stone floor of the abandoned laboratory. It must have been at least an hour or two before I found even a trace of a Pokemon. Fresh droppings, judging by its color and smell. Of all the possible clues, it had to be its poop.

Crawling was starting to hurt my knees and arms, so I decided to just get up and walk carefully. I highly doubt an unarmed human would scare off a Pokemon if said human moved carefully.

The room I was in was dark; which isn't really a surprise since most of the laboratory's lights have been either reduced to a flicker or burned out a long time ago. Luckily, there are windows, so there's enough light to see inside in the daytime. Good thing I didn't decide to come here at nighttime, although I'll have to hurry. It was almost six in the evening, and the sun's rays were already turning a dark shade of orange.

That's when I heard it. A quiet squeak that I almost didn't hear. Luckily, I did.

It was coming from the other room, so I quickly, but carefully, walked over. I stuck my head in, the rest of my body hidden behind the slowly decaying doorframe, and saw nothing. There was a sofa with the stuffing falling out, a refridgerator that probably wasn't working anymore, and a dirty rug.

No Pokemon.

I sighed, and stepped into the room. Where did that sound come from?

Suddenly, I felt this… strange feeling envelope me. I tried to move, but my body wouldn't respond. I couldn't even blink; the cool thing was, I didn't need to. It was like I was surrounded by a forcefield, and inside that forcefield was a void, where things existed and only existed.

The next thing I knew, I was flying across the room, towards what I hoped was the sofa. I hit whatever it was that I was flying towards (it was hard) and I landed roughly to the floor. I looked up, holding my pounding head, and saw that I hit the fridge. Man, the sofa was right next to it, why the fridge?

I looked around the room, and saw a floating pink thing. It was round in shape, and had a small little trunk, and purple floral prints on its back. Its red eyes glared at me, so I knew I was unwanted here.

A munna. Feisty too. I was gonna catch it.

"Hey, buddy. How you doing? I'm Josh, and. Well. I was wondering if you wanted to join me. You see, there's this girl, and-" but I didn't get to finish.

The forcefield surrounded me again, and I was flying out of the room.

Ok, plan B. "Hey munna! Your poop smells bad! But you smell even worse!" I heard the muuna squeak and I knew that it was going to chase me out here. I tossed a quickball that I found in my bag at the door, hoping that the munna would accidentally bump into it.

Luckily, it did. The blue and yellow pokeball fell to the ground and shook. Once. Twice. Three times.

Beep.

I was a Pokemon Trainer again.


	6. Chapter 5: The Conversation

Chapter 5: The Conversation

_[I]I hate you.[/I]_

"So what does it do?" asked Tom. He ran his tanned hand through his curly brown hair and looked up from the muuna, who was glaring at me.

_[I]I'm never going to listen to you, you know.[/I]_

I gave Tom a look, and asked him if he was serious. He nodded, and started to explain, but the munna started talking again.

_[I]I really hate you.[/I]_

After catching Munna, I headed home and decided to take a shower. I called Tom too, telling him to meet me at the restaurant, which he agreed to do. He doesn't do a lot here when he comes by for errands, which is probably why he likes it here so much. I guess they make him work at the other cities. Anyways, after my shower, I decided to let the munna out of its pokeball and make friends with it.

Not really my best idea; I'm going to have a huge mess to clean up when I get back home, and a couple of bruises. In short, I got thrown across the room multiple times, and the most unthinkable things became projectile weapons. I had to throw a blanket on top of the floating munna, wrap it up in a bundle, and threaten to return it to its pokeball if it didn't stop trying to kill me to make Munna stop.

It stopped, but it's been uncooperative and annoying the whole time. It wouldn't even tell me whether it was a boy or a girl, since the males and females bore no differentiating marks.

I allowed the munna to just follow me around outside of its pokeball, but I had a balloon string tied around it to make sure it didn't get away. Tom was waiting outside the restaurant when I got there, and we both went in.

"Munna, really. Tell me, what do I have to do to make you cooperate with me?" I looked at the munna, who glanced sideways at Tom, who was still talking.

_[I]Make him be quiet, and I'll let up on you for a few minutes. He hasn't stopped talking since we got here. I hate him more than you, honestly. Barely.[/I]_

I was going to take any chance I could to get the psychic pokemon out of my head for a moment. [I]_I heard that.[/I]_

"Tom. This is a munna. Like most Unovan Pokemon, it is native only to Unova. It's also a Psychic type, which gives it the power to move things with its mind." Despite my not being very familiar with the Unova region and its Pokemon, some Unovan Pokemon had some amount of fame outside of its region, which is why I even knew what a muuna was. "Munna's special ability is to eat dreams, which, now that I think about it, is much like Drowzee."

Tom, who had been nodding in understanding, gave me a look. Confusion, most likely. "Drowzee; a Pokemon native to the Johto and Kanto regions. Also a Psychic type, and also eats dreams. Honestly, Tom. Did you decide to just sleep through Pokemon 101 in school?"

He smiled as he said, "Oh, school. That's why you're so smart at Pokemon. I skipped school a lot, and decided I wanted to drive for a living. I tried out at the racing tracks often, but those stopped because it's apparently illegal to drag race in Unova. Anywhere actually, but I see it on TV a lot, so it must be legal somewhere."

NASCAR, Tom.

"But I never graduated, and since I liked driving so much, I became a truck driver. Seemed like the logical choice from there." Tom smiled and went back to admiring Munna. "Well, if you're psychic, what am I thinking?"

He scrunched his face up, as if to make it difficult for the little Dream Eater pokemon to read his mind. [I]_It doesn't work by the way._ _He's thinking about cheese. Tell him.[/I]_

"Uh, cheese," I said.

"Wait, I thought you said Munna was psychic. Are you psychic too?" Tom asked me, leaning in closer to me.

I chuckled a little and replied, "No, Munna told me. The munna's psychic."

Understanding dawned on his face. "I see… Well, so what now? You have a pokemon, now what?"

"I'm heading out to Black City. I'm sure I can find a car or something heading in that area, or at least to Nimbasa City. It looks like a straight shot from Nimbasa. I'll try to work with Munna too, so that we can get some sort of experience together before we head into danger."

I looked at the restaurant that had been my home and felt sad. There was a chance I wasn't going to come back to this. After everything that's happened to me in the past seven months, or hasn't happened to me, this was the one place that I knew I'd find solace in. First a chance at escape, and then Serena. I realized that I probably might never see Serena again, too.

And my solemn moment was ruined by two kinds of bombarding; one from more questions from Tom, and, the more difficult to ignore, an angry shouting in my head. Eerie, and alien.

_[I]DANGER? Who said anything about 'danger'? Are you telling me you caught me so that we can go off on some crazy mission that'll get us killed? Nooooo way, sir, I will fry your brains with my psychic attacks before I even CONSIDER joining your stupid crusade.[/I]_

I wasn't going to let you get hurt. I found this hold item a long time ago, the eject button. If anything bad were going down, all you'd have to do is press it and you'd be safe. It would shoot you out of the area. I just really need your help.

_[I]HELL NO. Go die on your own, I'm leaving.[/I]_

But then she'll die.

_[I]What?[/I]_

Mica Rae Sanders will die. I need to rescue her.

_[I]Her?[/I]_

Yes, Munna. Her. I can't leave her there; the only way I can save her is to go myself. The authorities are taking their sweet time. So that leaves me. And I can't do it alone; I can't do it without pokemon.

Silence, unless you paid attention to Tom's blabbering about nothing. If I listened carefully, I could hear him talking about how one pokemon wouldn't be enough.

Ok, so it was silent in my head. Not even our first day, and I'm already accustomed to Munna's mental intrusions. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

_[I]I'll do it. Under two conditions.[/I]_

Shoot.

_[I]One. Don't get any ideas. I'm not warming up to you, buster. I hate you. [/I]_

Didn't even dream of it.

_[I]Good. Two. When we save her, you give me to her. She's a good person, right?[/I]_

I was taken aback. My face showed it, I guess, and it must have gone in time with whatever Tom was saying, because I could hear him getting more enthusiastic with what he was saying. How could he seriously keep up a conversation by himself?

You want me to give you away?

_[I]I don't like you. Why are you surprised?[/I]_

Good point. I don't know. I'm hurt, maybe.

_[I]Oh, I'm so sorry, Mr. Sensitive. Would you like a tissue?[/I]_

No thanks. I think I'll just give you away. What is it about me that you don't like, anyway? I thought maybe the thought of your being captured was it. Pride, or love of freedom. If it were the latter, I might even have given in and released you. But obviously, it's just me. So, what's wrong with me?

Again silence. I never noticed how empty my thoughts were until now; I shouldn't have been though. This was probably practiced. I did spend months attempting to perfect the life of a robot; no thoughts and no feelings. Silence in my head was actually a regular thing.

_[I]I don't like you because you're a boy.[/I]_

What?

_[I]I always wanted to be caught by a girl. I heard someone moving while I was in the Dreamyard, as you humans call it, and I got excited. I bolted out, hoping for a girl to be my trainer, but there you were. And it frustrated me. So I tossed you across the room. And you said I smelled like poop. So I got mad and you caught me. You tricked me. So not only are you not a girl, you're a trickster. A liar. That's why I don't like you. But if you can give me to that girl you want to save, then we have a deal. I'll help you save her, and you help me get my girl trainer.[/I]_

I was speechless. Or thoughtless, whatever. It shocked me enough to not think. I did notice that my facial expression probably answered Tom again, because he kept talking.

Munna must have noticed him too, or I guess, finally got on its nerves, because it stopped looking at me, and faced Tom. I noticed Tom's expression start to change, and suddenly, he fell face-first onto the table.

_[I]Finally. He would NOT shut up.[/I]_

I shrugged. Nothing I could do now.

Munna set herself on top of Tom's head and looked back at me, now level to my head. [I]_So do we have a deal?[/I]_

I could see no reason not to. I guess I never thought about what might happen if I successfully rescued Rae. Or how Munna would fit in the equation. I guess giving Rae the munna would be a way of me giving her protection, which would be wonderful. Rae was really bad in terms of pokemon. She wasn't good at training them, and even worse at catching them. After training, Munna would have gained some nice experience, which would mean Rae would have decent protection. So, why not?

_[I]Good[/I],_ was all the munna had to say.

I shook my head. Who would have thought; one day, I was going to meet a sexist pokemon? Usually, the trainers were sexist, and wanted all boy, or all girl pokemon. Or had preferences to the genders of their pokemon.

_[I]Ok, look. And again, don't think I'm warming up to you. I'm not. I don't like you. I just promised to cooperate, and unlike humans, pokemon are true to their words. Well, most pokemon. Dark pokemon aren't as reliable. But others are. So I will stay true to my word. I'm a girl. I want to do those girl things that pokemon do with their trainers, and you being a boy, that's not going to happen. So if I have to be caught then I'm going to belong to a girl trainer.[/I]_

I chuckled. Sexist.

Now that we're decided, why don't we wake up Tom?

Munna rolled her eyes. [I]_Do we have to?[/I]_

I nodded. We have to. He's driving.

She shrugged and continued sitting on his head, looking oddly content. She then bolted off of his head, landed on the seat next to him, and just as she was clear, he shot up, screaming.

"AAAAAHHHH! What happened? Where am I? Why am I here? And I really think that you need a different pokemon other than that munna and I have a good idea and that good idea is at Professor Juniper's lab, who is only a few miles south from here and she gives out pokemon to newbie trainers and she told me that she only had one new trainer for the season and she needed to get rid of the other two pokemon and I think it would be idea for you to go and talk to her. I'll drive. Woah, where did that come from?"

Tom collapsed back into his seat, exhausted from his run-on sentence. What'd you do to him?

_[I]Nothing. I just gave him a dream of lots of that. Coffee I think you humans call it. And pokemon that I know. Nothing heavy. [/I]_

Huh. Well, it obviously was heavy for him. But good job. Maybe we can get you a friend. The more help we get the better, right?

_[I]Sure, sure. Help is definitely nice. [/I]_

Ok.

I looked at Tom, readying what I was going to say in my mind, and laughed. His expression was just. He was gone. Like he had gone a whole week living off of weed, or gone partying from dawn to dusk. Or something like that.

"Hey, Tom, you good?" I asked, snapping my fingers in front of his eyes.

His expression didn't change, but he answered nonetheless. "Never better, bud. Ready to go?"

I wasn't sure Tom was in the best state of mind to be driving, so I told him to meet me at my place in 10 minutes. I figured I should at least prepare some supplies before I set off, and he needed to sober up. I don't know what he dreamt about, but he needed to sober up from it.

Munna decided to go calmly, deciding to place herself on my head this time. She's kind of heavy, so I guess it's punishment. She assured me that it was.

As I was walking home, I noticed a lone figure walking the lonely streets of a nine in the evening Striaton City. Which was strange, since in Striaton City, the streets were deserted at nine in the evening, no matter what day.

And then I saw Serena. She had a pink hoodie and black tights on, and she had her arms crossed, like she was hugging herself. Like she was sad.

It made me want to hug her too. She looked sad. I didn't want her to be sad.

_[I]Is this the girl?[/I]_

No. This is a different girl.

_[I]Can you give me to her?[/I]_

No, that's not a part of the deal.

I kind of wish it were though.

"Hey, Serena! Is that you?" I jogged over to where she was walking, and started walking next to her.

"Oh, hey, Josh. Um, I'm, I'm fine, thanks. Just out for a walk," was her reply. She seemed down.

"Odd time of the day to be out for a walk, don't you think?" A legitimate question. At least I thought so.

"Yeah, it is. I just, I just needed to get some air, that's all." She looked at me and smiled. It didn't reach her eyes.

"So, I uh. I'm leaving. Tonight." Might as well get it over with.

"O-oh." Smile's gone.

"I'm… I've got something important to do. In another city. And I might not come back. I just, I wanted to say goodbye." Wow, this was actually more painful than I thought it would be. Did it really already get this far?

"Goodbye, huh?" She looked at me, and it looked like she was trying to hold back her tears.

"Yeah…" I honestly didn't know what to say.

Awkward silence.

"W-well… Goodbye, then. It was nice knowing you." She looked up at me, briefly, and started to look down.

"Yeah, it really was. You take care, ok?" I smiled at her.

"Y-yeah. I-I will. You too." Her voice was starting to crack, and I heard sniffling.

Good job, Josh. She's crying.

I didn't want to leave her crying, not when she's been such a good friend to me, so I pulled her in for a hug. I wanted to comfort her. She looked up at me.

And then she kissed me. The warmth of her lips pressed mine, soft and unsure.

And then it was gone. She mumbled a quiet apology, then turned around and walked away.

I almost stopped her. I wanted to run after her, and pull her into my arms. And hold her. We've only known each other for two weeks, but. She was a nice presence in my life. Like the warmth of the sun after a day in the rain.

But I couldn't. Not now. If I came back, after saving Rae, then I'll let myself. Maybe. But I can't do it now, when Rae needs me. This is the last way I can make it up to her.

After being alone for the past eight months, trying to avoid feeling or thinking anything, I realized something when I opened up again. I was never a good boyfriend. Especially towards the end of the relationship. I took Rae for granted. I got comfortable with her being there, and I stopped letting her know she was important.

This is the last way I can make it up to her, after wasting four years of her life; by saving it.

_[I]Ahhh. There's the explanation. I knew that reading your thoughts would eventually provide an answer.[/I]_

Answer for?

_[I]Why you're letting that blonde girl go.[/I]_

Oh. Well, to answer that question, I'm letting Serena go, so that I can save Rae. I have to save Rae, because no one else will. So the next logical question; why me? My answer; because I'm apparently the only one who's willing.

_[I]Are you really?[/I]_

Seems like it.


End file.
